Top 10 luxury brand mobile campaigns of Q2

Luxury marketers revamped their mobile strategies by creating enticing applications and new mobile-optimized sites to keep consumers constantly connected to their brands.

In the second quarter, luxury automakers created new interactive apps to stimulate consumer interest in new vehicles, while retailers made ecommerce easier for consumers. Overall, all of the mobile efforts focused on creating positive brand experiences.

Here are the top 10 luxury brand mobile efforts of the second quarter of 2013, in alphabetical order.

Cartier Destinée engagement ring

Cartier – French jeweler Cartier generated desire for its engagement rings and wedding bands among affluent brides through a solo sponsorship of the iPad app for New York magazine’s weddings edition.

For the first time, consumers can download the latest issue of the semi-annual New York Weddings magazine free of charge since Cartier is sponsoring the app. The French jeweler added animation and interaction to its digital ad placements throughout the magazine so that readers are more likely to engage with the sponsored content.

Cartier first appears in the summer iPad edition of New York Weddings immediately after the cover page of the magazine. The ad states, “This edition of New York Weddings is presented to you courtesy of Cartier.”

Counting the first placement, the jeweler has a total of five ads in the magazine that are shown intermittently throughout the issue.

Chopard Happy Sport

Chopard – Swiss jeweler Chopard celebrated the anniversary of its Happy Sport watch through a mobile app that lets consumers personalize their own timepiece and explore other custom creations.

The “My Happy Sport” app gives users complete control of every piece of their watch. By providing the personalization technology, the app aims to inspire consumers to purchase their own custom watch from the watchmaker, but does not include commerce.

With the option to design one from scratch, the app takes users through a variety of different steps to customize every aspect of their watch.

Also, the app asks consumers to enter their contact information and gives them a unique code to be able to access their design after all of the personalization steps are complete

The Amazing Shoemaker exhibit

Ferragamo - Italian footwear label Salvatore Ferragamo bridged the gap between the themed window display at its New York flagship boutique and its Italy-based museum exhibition through a QR code.

The code is scannable on the store’s window in front of the display for the “Making of a Dream” comic book that depicts the life of designer Mr. Ferragamo. Scanning the code takes consumers to a mobile-optimized site with a synopsis of the “The Amazing Shoemaker” exhibit at Florence-based Museo Salvatore Ferragamo.

Details of the exhibit are listed, which include the location, dates, hours and the museum’s Web site.

The site also offers details on pieces of the exhibit.

The bottom of the site tells consumers “All you can do is come and see.” Below there is a link to the museum’s Web site to book an entry at the museum and links to share the exhibit information on social media.

Beverly Wilshire mobile app

Four Seasons – Beverly Wilshire, a Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills, CA, enhanced the hotel experience through a mobile app that allows guests to take full control of their stay.

This app will help guests while on-site and show off the hotel’s offers to consumers who are planning vacations.

Harrods dancing Green Man

Harrods – London department store Harrods targeted local shoppers through a city-wide mobile scavenger hunt to win approximately $1,500 to spend in-store.

The retailer’s ambassador, the Green Man, danced in the streets of London to promote Harrods annual sale and encouraged consumers to enter the contest by taking an image of him and posting it to Twitter. Not only did the contest create a social buzz for the retailer, but it also made use of out-of-home advertising since the Green Man likely drew attention on the streets.

Harrods promoted the contest and the sale through its social media channels. The retailer also gave away the Green Man’s location to encourage more consumers to find him and upload images.

The Trail Less Traveled app

Land Rover – Land Rover North America is promoting its next-generation Range Rover model features and driving capabilities through an interactive mobile app.

The “Range Rover: The Trail Less Traveled” app gives consumers the chance to virtually experience riding in the vehicle in a variety of different settings and viewpoints. Land Rover is likely aiming for aspirational owners rather than its customers with this app since it mainly shows off what the model can do.

The app gives users a full inside and outside look at the new Range Rover through eight different stages and four camera views, which show off the vehicles capabilities.

App users can choose their perspective, soundtrack and stage on which to drive the Range Rover.

The stages take users through interactive video courses that include winding roads, rough terrain, water, climbing up and down hills and an elegant arrival.

McIntosh AP1 Audio Player

McIntosh – High-end home entertainment brand McIntosh Laboratory Inc. enhacned the consumer experience through updates to its mobile app that included compatibility with certain products and more content.

The brand released version 1.1 of the AP1 Audio Player to refresh the app, show off its history and let consumers find their nearest McIntosh retailer.

The primary function of the app was initially to let consumers access the audio library on their iOS device through a classic McIntosh interface, which includes the brand’s signature blue meters, rather than through the standard music player.

Last quarter, McIntosh integrated AirPlay technology so that its customers can wirelessly stream music from their iTunes library to an AirPlay-compatible speaker system such as the McIntosh McAire that retails for $3,000.

In addition, the app contains new sections that offer brand history, a mini product catalog and a dealer locator.

Mercedes' corporate mobile site

Mercedes-Benz – German automaker Mercedes-Benz created a mobile-optimized Web site to provide on-the-go consumers with branded content and media.

After overhauling its Web strategy in 2012 to offer a magazine-style site, Mercedes optimized the platform for smartphone users.

The mobile site presents smartphone users with the latest brand content through a slideshow on the homepage. Consumers can swipe their finger across the screen to browse seven pieces of content.

The sections of the mobile site mirror those found on Mercedes’ desktop site: Vehicles, Innovation, Design, History, Sports, Fashion, Zeitgeist and TV.

Consumers can navigate to each section from a drop-down menu or by browsing the entire set of content of the homepage.

Nordstrom iPhone app

Nordstrom – Department store chain Nordstrom enhanced the experience on its iPhone app with updates that include product sharing via SMS and user reviews. The updated functions of the app will help consumers share their opinions on Nordstrom’s products with their friends and fellow shoppers.

Nordstrom chose to tweak the shopping experience on its commerce-enabled iPhone app to encourage consumers to share their opinion on products.

Before the update, consumers could share their favorite items with their friends via Facebook, Twitter and email.

Now, consumers can send an auto-generated text message to anyone in their contact list about a particular product.

Cayman Code

Porsche – Porsche virtually put consumers in the front seat of its Cayman vehicle via a mobile app that is designed to promote safe driving and build brand awareness, while also letting consumers compete in a variety of challenges.

The “Code of the Curve” app fosters camaraderie among current and prospective Porsche drivers by structuring and mapping driving challenges that affluent consumers may face while on the road.

The app adroitly captures the movements of the car so that drivers can catalog their skills and communicate with their friends, family or other drivers.

Final takeErin Shea, editorial assistant on Luxury Daily, New York

Erin Shea is an editorial assistant on Luxury Daily. Her beats are apparel and accessories, government, home furnishings, legal and privacy, nonprofits and retail. Reach her at erin@napean.com.